Stayed or tabbed box-covering blank.



J. S. STOKES.

STAYED 0R TABBED BOX COVERING BLANK.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.I7. Ian.

1 273,420. Patented July 23, 1918 I I IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Wm to;

UNITED- STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN STOGDELL STOKES, 0F MOORESTOWN, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO STOKES &

SMITH COMPANY, OF SUMMERDALE, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PEN N- SYLVANIA.

Application filed August 17, 1917.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that JOHN STooDELL STOKES, a citizen of the United States, residing at Moorestown, in the county of Burlington and State of New Jersey, has invented new and useful Improvements in Stayed or Tabbed Box-Covering Blanks, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in box covering blanks of the type shown and described in my prior Patent, No. 845,205 dated February 26th, 1907.

Blanks of this type, which are employed in covering the top, side and end walls, or bottom, side and end walls of paper boxes have, since their introduction. by me, come to be known in the art as tabbed or stayed blanks, and the material or stock from which the blanks are made is often comparatively thin and sometimes highly finished or decorated on the face that ultimately forms the exterior of the finished box to which the blanks are applied.

According to my prior patent, the corner stays or tabs are attached to a face of the blank by means of adhesive, the latter being applied over the entire area of the tabs or stays.

WVhile stayed blanks made in this manner have proved to be of great value in the box-making art, in that the cost of manufacturing the boxes is very materially reduced and a better product obtained, it has been found, in some instances, that the glue employed in attaching the corner stays or tabs to the blanks, owing to the fact that it becomes hard and brittle when set, has a tendency to crack and break through the material of the cover blank at the point or points, or along the line or lines, where the blank and its stays or tabs are bent or folded about the edges and angles of the box to which the blank is applied, thus materially marring or disfiguring the appearance of the finished product. This is particularly noticeable where the coveringblanks are made from highly glazed or finished stock, and especially if the stock is thin, as it often is.

It has also been found, where the tabs or stays are attached by a coating of glue applied over the entire face thereof, as in my prior patent, that the blanks will wrinkle or curl at the points of attachment, espe- Specification of Letters Patent.

STAYED OB TABBED BOX-COVERING BLANK.

Patented Jlily 23, 1918.

Serial No. 186,699.

cially where the blank stock is of thin material, thus rendering it difficult to apply a, uniform coating of adhesive over that face of the blanks to which the tabs or stays are attached, with the result that where the adhesive is not applied uniformly over the tabs the box will be correspondingly weakened.

The prime object theref re, of the present invention is to obviate the e and other critioisms or objections found to exist to a greater or less extent in the covering blank of my former patent, to the end that the adoption and use of this style of blank may be extended to all classes of stock or material and especially the thinnest and most highly finished and expensive materials, without being open to the stated criticisms or objections.

In carrying my present invention into effect and in order to obviate the criticisms or objections and secure'the improvements and advantages herein stated, I provide for attaching the corner stays or tabs to the blanks along spaced or separated zones or lines, and preferably in such manner that there will be no adhesive attachment of the tabs or blanks, or practically none, at the points or along the lines where the blanks and their tabs are bent or folded around the corners and over the edges of the boxes, the tabs or stays at these points being either entirely unattached to their blanks, or attached only by lines or relatively narrow zones of adhesive.

As in my former patent, and in order to illustrate the invention, I have elected to show the same as applied to a familiar form of covering blank such as is now used, but I do not wish to be understood as limiting myself to this particular outline or design of blank, as it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the design or outline will vary accordingly asthe shape or contour of the boxes to be covered vary.

In the annexed drawing- Figure 1 is a plan view of one form of covering blank made according to the present invention and having the reinforcing strips or tabs applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the reverse side of one of the corner staying tabs showing one manner of applying the attaching ad- Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a box having one of my improved blanks applied thereto, a portion of a side wall near one corner of the box being broken away to show the position of the reinforcing strip or tab at said corner.

Fig. 5' is a transverse sectional View of one corner of the box shell showing one of my improved tabbed blanks attached thereto.

Referring now to the drawings, the referencenumeral 1 designates the body portion of the type of blank shown, which is shaped to correspond to the size and shape of the top or bottom of the box to which the blank is to be applied. 2 are the end flaps or wings, and 3 arethe side flaps or wings, the latter having the usual end laps 4:.

It will be seen from the foregoing that the form of blank illustrated consists of a body portion having integral side and end flaps or wings. In the application of a blank to a box, the body portion 1, is designed to cover the top or bottom of the box, the side flaps 3 are then turned .up and applied to the sides. of the box, and the end laps .4, turned around the box corners and applied to the end walls, and the end laps 2, are then applied-to the end Walls of the box over the end laps 4.

As stated in my prior patent, in order to utilize a covering blank of this type, in covering unstayed boxes, I contemplate strengthening those portions of the covering blank that are turned around the unstayed corners of the vertical box Walls, so that when the covering blank is applied to the box, these previously unstayed corners will be stayed and strengthened, the operations of covering and staying being carried on simultaneously, thus materially reduc-\ ing the cost of the finished box.. 1

In order to provide for staying the un' stayed corners of the boxes to which the blanks are to be attached, I secure to those flaps or Wings of the blank that carry the end laps 4t, (where such end laps are present) reinforcing or strengthening strips or tabs 5 of relatively strong or tough, but flexible material,such as Manila paper, muslin or any other suitable flexible material,the said reinforcing strips or tabs being so positioned on the blank, or the flaps or wings thereof, as to extend upon both sides of the folding line 6, between the wings and end laps, as Where the end la s are folded about the corners or angles o the "box.

These reinforcingstrips or tabs 5, are secured to the covering blank by adhesive either before or after the blank has been cornered, but instead of securi'ngeach strip or tab to its blank by a coating of adhesive that extends over the entire face or area of the tab, as in my formerpatent, according to my present improvement I attach As more clearly shown in Fig. 2, the separated zones 7, of adhesive material may be applied along the opposite marginal edges of the tabs and may take the form of continuous stripes or lines of glue, although instead of continuous stripes or lines, applied in the manner stated, the glue might be otherwise applied, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

By attaching the corner stays or tabs to their blanks in the manner stated, that is to say, by spaced lines or zones preferably arranged at opposite sides of the folding line of the tab, I obviate entirely all liability of cracking or breaking of the cover blank at the point or points, or along the line or eration of folding the marginal edges of the blank over the marginal edges of the box, as where the said marginal edges of the blank and its tabs are folded over and adhesively attached to the inner walls of the box as more clearly shown in Fig. 4.

When the reinforced blank is to be applied to a box, the reinforced face thereof is coated, preferably, throughout its entire area, with adhesive. The top or bottom as the case may be, of the box shell, is then centered upon the body portion 1 of the breaking or cracking of the blank, the opblank and the side and end Wings are then folded up and adherently attached. to the side and end walls of the box either by machine or by hand, accordingly as the box is machine or hand covered. a

consisting of separate pieces of staying material attached thereto and positioned thereon over the corner folding lines to stay the corner joints of the box, said tabs normally lying in substantially the plane of the blank and being attached by separated zones of adhesive, those portions of the tabs that overlie the corner joints-being unattached to the blank.

2. As a new article of manufacture, a box covering and staying blank for completely covering the bottom, side and end Walls of a box-shell and for staying the corner joints thereof, said blank comprising a body portion having integral side and end wings and end laps at the opposite ends of saidwings adapted to be folded about the box corners, and corner staying tabs of reinforcing material attached to said side Wings and end laps and positioned thereon over the corner folding lines to cover and stay the corner joints of said box shell, said tabs normally lying in substantially the plane of the blank and each being adhesively attached thereto by spaced or separated lines or stripes of adhesive removed from the corner folding ines.

3. As a new article of manufacture, a stayed or tabbed 'box covering blank of the character described, comprising a blank proper for application to a box, said blank having staying tabs attached thereto and positioned thereon to overlie and stay the corner-joints of the box to which the blank is applied, each of said tabs being attached to the blank by spaced or separated zones of adhesive leaving other portions of the tabs unattached, but normally lying in substantially the plane thereof.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

JOHN STOGDELL STOKES. 

